Part of Questions to the Deputy Minister and Chief Whip – in the Senedd at 2:43 pm on 14 May 2019.
Now, figures released recently show that South Wales Police receive a phone call every 15 minutes about domestic violence or abuse—a truly shocking figure. One positive move in terms of the identification of domestic abuse has been the Identification and Referral to Improve Safety scheme, the IRIS scheme, which sees GPs and practice staff in Cardiff, the Vale of Glamorgan, Merthyr and Rhondda Cynon Taf trained to spot the signs of domestic abuse through a series of questions. In Rhondda Cynon Taf and Merthyr, where the scheme started in January 2016, there have now been over 500 referrals where previously there had not been any. I believe that this award-winning project needs to be rolled out across the whole of the South Wales Police area, including into areas such as Swansea and Neath Port Talbot and, indeed, across the whole of Wales. To that end, do you agree and, if so, what support is the Welsh Government prepared to provide health boards to help contribute to this vitally important area?